Chuck Schumer Attacks Trump's Decision to Parole Family Members of Mexican Cartel Leaders into the United States

Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) attacked President Donald Trump's reported decision to parole family members of Mexican cartel leaders into the United States

output: A new post from Democratic Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday morning brought attention to President Donald Trump's reported decision to parole family members of Mexican cartel leaders into the United States. This decision, linked to a statement from Mexico's security chief, follows the extradition of Ovidio Guzman Lopez, son of Sinaloa Cartel’s drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, to the U.S. earlier this year.

What Happened: In his X post, Schumer shared a portion of an article from the Associated Press, which reported that Lopez, extradited in January, reached an agreement with the administration to exchange his return for the release of family members who had already crossed into the U.S.

The report said that the family members, including a sister and brother-in-law of Lopez, crossed into the U.S. last week, as confirmed by Mexico's security chief.

“Trump is letting cartel family members just come right into our country as part of an agreement to extradite cartel members to the U.S.,” said Schumer, adding that the development was “dangerous” and would bring devastating consequences.

“And for this dangerous deal, announced by corrupt Mexican officials, we already know what U.S. officials had to trade away to get it,” the senior Democrat said, touting the statement from a high-ranking Mexican security official.

“How much memecoin did Sinaloa have to buy to make this happen?” he asked, referring to the Official Trump TRUMP/USD meme coin and the $2 billion cryptocurrency.

The senior Democrat’s post comes as Trump has spoken at length about his administration’s war on Mexican drug cartels, which he has said pose a threat to national security.

Several hours after his inauguration in January 2017, Trump signed an executive order designating certain international cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists.

The president’s move came in response to the growing threat posed by cartels, not only in the U.S. but also around the world.

The president's executive order also authorized the State Department to offer rewards for information leading to the identification and location of any key leaders of the cartels.

El Chapo was found guilty of several criminal charges and sentenced to life in prison in July 2019. He was extradited to the U.S. in 2017 after escaping from a Mexican prison in 2015.

The case against El Chapo began in 2004, when the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) launched an investigation into the Sinaloa Cartel.

The cartel, founded in the 1980s, is one of the largest and most powerful criminal organizations in the world. It is estimated to control up to 90% of the U.S. cocaine market.

The cartel’s operations span several countries, including the U.S., Mexico, Colombia, and Peru.

The case against El Chapo went to trial in January 2019 in a federal court in Brooklyn, New York.

During the trial, several witnesses testified against El Chapo, including former members of the cartel and corrupt U.S. officials who aided the cartel’s operations.

The jury found El Chapo guilty on all 10 counts against him, including conspiracy to import narcotics, continuing a criminal enterprise, and money laundering.

After the verdict was read, El Chapo's attorneys said they planned to appeal the conviction.

Trump's administration has made dismantling international drug cartels a priority. In addition to designating cartel members as terrorists, the administration has also imposed sanctions on cartel leaders and their families.

The president has said that he is committed to doing everything in his power to put an end to the cartels' operations and bring those responsible for the drug trade to justice.

"We are going to hit them hard, and we are going to hit them fast," Trump said at a press conference in January 2019. "We are going to take down their organizations, one by one."

The president's comments come as the U.S. is facing a growing crisis of fentanyl overdoses.

Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine.

In recent years, fentanyl has been mixed with other drugs, such as cocaine and heroin, and sold on the street.

This practice has led to a sharp increase in overdoses.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 70,000 people died from drug